Headrest for creepers



1952 R. H. NEIL 2,614,271

HEADREST FOR CREEPERS Original Filed Jan. 24, 1949 INVENTOR RbbgytHlNeil ATTORNEY Patented Oct. 21, 1952 .HEADREST FOR cREEPERs Robert Harvey Neil, Tampa 'Ela.

Substituted for abandoned application Serial No.

March 19, 1951,'Ser'ial No. 216,371

72,389, January 24, 1949.. This application .1 Claim. 1

This application is a continuation of my previous application Serial No. 72,389, filed January 24, 1949.

This invention relates to creepers for automobile mechanics and it has for its primary object to provide a simple, inexpensive, and eflicient headrest unit to be sold as an artic1e -of manufacture capable of being readily and quickly attached to a creeper of any of the usual commercial forms in current use.

in modern automobile design, the tendency is to .keep the center of gravity of a car 'very'low, and a very limited amount of space beneath the vehicle is allowed for the removal and replacement of parts. A great deal of the ordinary repair work on automobiles requires that a mechanic must lie on his back under the car and it is the common practice to use a low-wheeled bed or creeper for his support while working.

Ordinarily, there is greasy dirt on the bottom of a car and to avoid having his face directly under his hands where dirt will fall when he uses a tool, the mechanic lies at a little distance, with his head lifted at an angle to his body. To maintain such a position, where the neck muscles have to support the weight of the head for a lon period of time, becomes very tiring and various forms of headrests have been used.

A hinged back rest to provide a change of body position has little value because the space available for working is limited and a fixed support for the head does not suit all of the different heights to which the mechanic must bring his eyes to see into the spaces bgtween the many projecting parts.

With these facts in mind, I have devised an adjustable headrest that is compact, practical, strong, and durable, to be installed in a few minutes as an accessory on almost any roller bed or creeper of the types now in use so that the older device need not be discarded in providing for greater comfort while working.

A further object of the invention is to provide for ready adjustment of the pad of the headrest to suit a users build and to shape supports to avoid interference with a users shoulders.

Another important object of the invention is to provide a release lever for the gravity-actuated brace to permit adjustment of the height of the headrest while the user lies on the creeper.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be seen in the description of a preferred construction chosen for purposes of illustration in the accompanying drawing, in which Figure 1 is a side elevation of a headrest in its lowermost and locked position; Fig. '2 isan end elevation as seen from the right in Fig. '1; Fig. 3 is aver-'- tical section onthe line III-III of 5, with" parts elevation, showing the headrestfrilly lifted on the base member; Figri-is an end ele vation as seen from the left in Fig. 3; Fig. 5-is -"a planview of the base member with partsui sec-j tion on the line V'--V of Fig. Figf'fi is-aside elevation showing "tlie ratciiet release "lever'in lifted position; and Fig. 7 is a plan viewof the rest with the pad in 'loweredposit'ion'." V

The device is shown as made or "sheet-metal. though it will be'understood that any other suitable material may be used.

A base plate I has hinged thereto at 2 a flanged top member 3 upon which is adjustably secured a padded head rest 4. The top member has at each side a' row of perforations 5 through which screws 6 may be passed to secure the rest 4 at a desired distance from the hinge 2 to suit the neck of the user.

A brace l, hinged at one end at 8 on the under surface of the member 3, has its other end free to engage any pair of alined lugs 9 punched up from the base I to form a ratchet by which the member 3 may be adjusted at any of various angles to lift and to hold the headrest 4 at the height the user finds most convenient for the work being done.

A release lever I0 hinged to the base at II lies at one side of one of the rows of ratchet lugs and beneath the free edge of the brace I, with its outer end projecting beyond the end of the base remote from the hinge 2 for easy engagement by the finger of the user. The lower edge of the brace is shown as having a notch I2 to receive the lever It! so that the lever will not interfere with the normal engagement of the brace with the lugs 9. When the mechanic wishes to lower the headrest from its lifted position, as in Fig. 3, he raises the outer end of the lever ID to engage the lower edge of the brace and to lift this lower edge above the tops of any of the lugs with which it may be in engagement. The brace is then free to slide along the top of the lower, allowing the member 3 to be lowered to the position shown in Fig. 1, or to any desired position of adjustment.

It has been found desirable to limit the upward swing of the member 3 on its pivot 2, and for this purpose, a detent member is provided, consisting of a curved rod I3 pivoted at one end in a lug I4 on the member 3 and slidable through a perforation in a lug I5 on the member I, the free end of the rod being bent to one side to engage the lug 15 when the member 3 is lifted sufficiently to let the lower edge of the brace I swing into position to engage the innermost pair of lacs 9.

The end flange of the member 3 remote from the hinge 2 has a notch 16 formed in its edge to r ive the lever I0 and a notch 11 provided with a lateral projection 18 for engagement with a latch consisting of a short lever 19 pivoted at 20 on the base I.

When the member 3 is in its lowermost position with the edge of the flange resting on the base plate, the latch lever l9 can be swung sidewise on its pivot across the sloping top of the projection IE to clamp the members I and 3 tightly together, with the brace, the ratchet, and the detent completely enclosed within the flange surrounding the sides and end of the member 3. The creeper may then be lifted and carried in any position with the headrest remaining securely in place.

It will be noted that the device is to be used solely as a rest for the head and that the adjustment of the padded rest on its supporting plate can readily be made to cause the distance from the pad to the hinge to be such as to suit the neck of the user, while the base is made so narrow near the hinged end that the shoulders of the user will not rest on the metal.

The latch can be released and the desired angular adjustment of the member 3 can be made 3 The structure will, of course, be understood as purely illustrative and subject to any changes and modifications within the scope of the appended claim.

I claim:

An article of manufacture comprising a base member adapted for attachment to the upper surface of a creeper, a top member hinged at one end to the base member and having a flange along its edges on the surface confronting the base, a latch adapted to secure the free end of the top member to the base when they ar adjacent to each other, a plurality of ratchet lugs on the base, a brace member having one end hinged to REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 319,537 Winter June 9, 1885 1,103,730 Anderson July 14, 1914 1,581,592 Neal Apr. 20, 1925 2,430,662 Barton Nov. 11, 1947 'Qi b H 

